Just a Lawn Gnome
by EbonyShroud
Summary: George Rotor is the self-proclaimed expert on lawn-gnomes. When a woman brings him a strange lawn-gnome that her daughter had pulled out of a pond, he quickly learns that the lawn-gnome is not like the other lawn-gnomes he has encountered before.


**This story is based on the Sims 3.**

* * *

It was a pleasant day in Sunset Valley, although the weather was always pleasant. There was never any foul weather, just perfect temperature and sunny skies every day. It's no wonder that the town was often called Pleasantview. One of the residents of the serene town, however, cared not for the lovely weather. Instead, he was holed up in his house and grumbling.

"Why do people enjoy being outside in the unrelenting sunlight, where the pests and scum and are?" He growled as he watched the children across the street run around in a frantic game of tag. He hated being outside, a trait he had ever since he was a child. He was pulled out of his brooding thoughts by the sound of the telephone. He growled before standing up and plucking the phone up from its cradle.

"Hello, this is the Rotor residence," He said.

"Good afternoon, is this George Rotor?" A thick female voice asked.

"The one and only. Who am I speaking with?" He answered as he leaned against the kitchen table. He usually never had people ask for him, unless it was about his overdue bills, unkempt lawn, or lack of a job.

"I am Jennie Vancouver. I heard that you are an expert on…lawn-gnomes," The woman asked nervously.

"Yes, is there something you need to know about gnomes?" He replied as he glanced towards the room where he conducted his research on the strange objects known as the common lawn-gnome.

"My daughter brought home this strange…lawn-gnome…and somehow it is doing strange things. If at all possible, can you please take a look at it and see what's wrong?"

"Ma'am, I would love to see this lawn-gnome and figure out what the problem is. Shall I pick it up at your house or will you drop it off?" He asked, glancing out the window. Despite his dislike for being outside, he wouldn't mind spending a dangerous moment outside his secure house if it meant he could get his hands on the lawn-gnome.

"I'll drop it off, I do not wish to disturb my daughter any more by having a stranger walk off with her prized lawn-gnome. I will be there shortly," the woman said curtly before hanging up. He glared at the cell phone in annoyance before returning it to its cradle. He glanced at the door before he walked to the refrigerator and opened it. He pulled out a carton of juice and brought it to table. He had only begun drinking the juice before the doorbell rang. He left the juice at the table and quickly hurried to the door.

"Hello," He said as he opened the door. The woman on the porch looked away from the scattered mounds of moldy newspapers and stared at him, wide blue eyes staring in disbelief. She held a curious lawn-gnome in her hands, a jolly little gnome with a orange hat with a yellow ornate flower, blue clothes, and a look on its ceramic face that unsettled George for a couple of minutes. However, the strange ornament did not disturb him for long.

"Is this the lawn-gnome you wanted me to check?" He asked.

"Yes," She said before thrusting it into his hands. The lawn-gnome was a little heavier than expected, but he quickly adjusted his hold and managed to avoid dropping it.

"Where did she find it?" He asked.

"Fishing, believe it or not. When she was brought home last night, she likes fishing past curfew and she's always getting caught, she was thrilled. But, something strange always occurs with it whenever we look away," The woman said, glancing down at the lawn-gnome before staring back at him.

"I'll examine it. How about you come back to pick it up in a couple of days?" He asked.

"That sounds great. Here is my number, in case you need to call me. I must go, before my daughter gets into any more trouble. Have a good day," She said before hopping off the porch and jumping into a taxi. He watched the taxi take off towards the town before he walked back into the house. He ignored the open carton of juice and hurried to the room where he held his research.

"Let's see what's the problem," He muttered giddily as he pushed through the door. The room was small, but it was perfect for his collection of gnomes, bookshelves, work desk and computer, and a telephone in case he needed to call someone. He set the strange gnome on his desk and started his examination.

"You're missing a stand, little gnome," He said, glancing at the ten gnomes sitting on a nearby table. All of them were situated on a stand, which kept them from toppling over. He also noted the missing tool that the other lawn-gnomes possessed. He quickly opened a new file on the computer and jotted the date and several notes about the strange gnome's design.

"This may be an earlier edition of a gnome, lost at the bottom of a pond for years before finally reaching light," He murmured to himself, a faint smile on his face. George pulled a book from the shelf and began searching for the gnome's brand. However, as he flipped past more and more pages of lawn-gnomes and their various designs, he could not find the lawn-gnomes design pattern or brand. Confused, he pulled out another reference book and quickly flipped through the thick book, only to see that the gnome was missing from it as well.

"This means that the lawn-gnome is handmade," He said before returning the books to the shelves and approaching the gnome again. He picked up the gnome and checked for a signature that would reveal its owner. He did not find anything to reveal its creator.

"Strange," He muttered. after staring at it for a few more minutes, he set the lawn-gnome on the floor for one last test. He swiftly kicked it over, knocking the gnome down on its face.

"Sorry, little gnome, but it's necessary," He muttered to the ornament as he picked it up and set it upright on the table. He noted that the lawn-gnome was easy to knock over and closed the file. He shut off the computer and left the room, leaving his strange collection of lawn-gnomes in the dark room.

* * *

He woke up early the next day, planning to spend the day figuring out what the lawn-gnome. This plan was halted temporarily when he noticed a short dark shape in a strange pose by the sink. He turned on the lights to see the lawn gnome he had been experimenting on standing on one leg and staring intently at the stove.

"What the hell?" George muttered. He walked over and stared at the lawn-gnome and its new position. He grumbled in annoyance and kicked the gnome. The ceramic ornament toppled over and slid into the stove.

"This must be the weird thing the woman was worried about," He growled. He picked up the lawn-gnome and brought it back into the room. He set the gnome on the desk again and checked to make sure that the other lawn-gnomes had not been disturbed from their locations. Ten ceramic jolly faces beamed back at him, assuring him that they had remained untouched.

"Maybe I was sleep-walking last night?" George growled to himself, glaring at the suspicious lawn-gnome. The lawn-gnome remained motionless. After a few minutes, he walked back out and started baking waffles, glaring outside at the weather.

"It's sunny again. Why can't it be anything else? Rain, sleet, snow, thunderstorms, fire; they all sound much better than never-ending sunshine," He grumbled before the timer rang, signaling that his waffles were done baking. He pulled out the waffles and brought them to the table, slowly chewing on them as he debated on what to do. He could go to the public library in town, where he could check their enormous reference sections. However, that meant he had to go outside and into the loud obnoxious town. But the library had a much bigger selection of research materials than his bookshelves held, with the possibility of finding out who created the strange gnome.

"Damn," He grumbled before getting up to shower and prepare to head outside his safe house and into the bright bitter world.

* * *

He spent the whole day in the library, poring over several new books on the development of the lawn-gnome, several reference books, and a manual that dictated how to make the gnomes. However, despite his searching, he was unable to find anything on the gnome's design or creator. When he left the library and got onto his rusty bike, the sun had already set.

"Damn, I spent too much time outside," He said, glancing at the sky before focusing on the road. After several minutes of biking, he reached his sanctuary. He set his bike on the porch and walked into the house. He turned on the lights and jumped when he saw the strange lawn-gnome had moved yet again. This time, it was lying on its side in front of the broken television, its back to the front door.

"I'm too tired for this crap," He growled, kicking the lawn-gnome around a couple of times in anger and annoyance before standing it back up and heading for the bedroom.

* * *

The alarm sounded at six in the morning, jolting him awake. He quickly shut off the alarm and after debating on sleeping in a few more minutes; he pulled back the covers and prepared to get out of bed. His feet touched something cold and he jumped in surprise, pulling his feet up to avoid touching the cold object. He frantically looked down and noticed the lawn-gnome had moved once again. This time, it was lying on its back by the bed, looking as if it had fallen asleep. He took a couple of shaky breaths as he stared down at the lawn-gnome. After a couple of minutes, he carefully got off the bed and moved around the gnome. Once he was clear, he dashed to the phone and hastily found the number to the woman.

"Hello," The familiar female voice asked sleepily.

"Is this Mrs. Vancouver?" He asked.

"Yes, this is she. Who is this?" She replied in annoyance.

"This is George Rotor. We met two days ago, you wanted me to check on a lawn-gnome, remember?" He asked.

"Yes, I do remember. Please tell me you found out something about that lawn-gnome. My daughter is getting more and more agitated with the loss of her precious lawn-gnome," The woman said, the sleepiness disappearing from her voice with each word she spoke.

"About that, I am sorry to inform you that I cannot complete my investigation on your lawn-gnome," He said, glancing towards the bedroom door.

"And why is that?" She asked, her voice heavy with suspicion. He glanced around, noticed the burglar alarm, and had an idea.

"I was robbed last night, the lawn gnome happened to be one of the things stolen," He replied hastily.

"Oh! I'm sorry, I didn't know. I hope you can get your stolen items back," She said in surprise.

"Thank you. I must go," He said.

"Of course. Goodbye," She replied. He hung up the phone and quickly looked around. He decided that he better hide the television and claim that it had been stolen, in case his lie somehow managed to reach the ears of the police. After finding a good place to hide it, inside the closet that connected the bedroom with the bathroom, he debated on how to get rid of the lawn-gnome. After several minutes of debate, he returned to the bedroom. He carefully picked up the gnome and brought it to his bike. He quickly pedaled to Pleasant Rest Graveyard. Once he reached the graveyard, he made sure no one was watching him as he walked towards the pond. When he was sure no one could notice, he pulled out the lawn-gnome and chucked it to the center of the pond. It landed with a loud splash and floated momentarily before sinking to the depths of the pond.

"Back where it belongs, at the murky bottom of the pond," He muttered before returning to his bike.

* * *

As he biked home, his mood lifted slightly. The strange moving lawn-gnome was now out of his life, stuck at the bottom of the pond. If anyone were to pull out the lawn-gnome, he would make sure he would not take it from them. He would remember that devilish little ornament until the day he died. He decided that he better find another hobby to occupy himself with and get rid of the other lawn-gnomes, to make sure no one else would bring him the lawn-gnome. Once he reached his house, he parked the bike securely on his front porch and walked into his house.

The neighbors were surprised to hear shrieks of horror from the Rotor house. Several concerned neighbors rushed to the house to find George curled in fetal position in his living room, shaking in terror and muttering to himself. They called the police and hospital, worried they he had been attacked by a burglar or was suffering from some sort of disease or ailment. Once the police and ambulance arrived and carted away the terrified man, they noticed that the only thing that was out of the ordinary was the strange lawn-gnome standing where the television had once stood, standing tall and proud in the living room.


End file.
